


Respite

by avengingvelociraptortimelord (xsilverxlightx)



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: F/F, Femslash Yuletide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-30
Updated: 2013-12-30
Packaged: 2018-01-06 16:57:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1109282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xsilverxlightx/pseuds/avengingvelociraptortimelord
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bobbi and Natasha finish up a mission in Italy early.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Respite

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Day 16 of the Femslash Yuletide's prompt: "Christmas Lights."

They finish a mission in Italy early and decide not to go back until after the holidays. S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers can handle a few days without them after all. They deserve the break. It’s Bobbi’s idea but Natasha is quick to agree. Bobbi’d had a whole argument she’d come up with while they were waiting for the mark to arrive that she ends up not needing. Rome is the obvious choice with a big enough tourist season that they’ll go unnoticed and a place where neither of them have had an op go south.

It’s warmer than New York this time of year so they spend their days exploring the city, taking turns pretending to be a resident showing a friend from abroad the sights. They walk down cobbled streets and through ruins and museums with their hands clasped tight. Bobbi bargains with the Christmas market vendors at the Piazza Navona in Italian as though she’d been doing so her entire life for a scarf that caught Natasha’s eye. Natasha cajoles her into ice skating at the rink near Castel Sant’Angelo and if they’re both pretending to be less graceful than they really are, neither comments on the fact that it is as much so they have excuses to bump into one another as it is to avoid drawing too much attention.

They don’t fall too far into their roles, even if they both sometimes half wish they could. It could be so easy to forget about their pasts and just be happy and carefree. It could be but isn’t. Their pasts are what shaped them into who they are today and while the respite is nice, they wouldn’t give that up. It is one of the many reasons this thing between them works. They know what they are, what they’ve done and they accept it, good or bad. They still survey the crowds and always know their quickest exits. They have enough weapons stashed on themselves to deal with any unexpected threats.

They are both glad though to be using their skills for their own pleasure rather than a mission objective. The city is beautiful, sprawling and twisting with magnificent architecture and art at every turn. It’s got a slower pace than New York, another welcome change as they emerge themselves in the culture and history. There is something awe inspiring and humbling about being in a city that old. It’s a good feeling when they’ve gotten so accustomed to being larger than life themselves.

They use cover names in public but their actions are their own when it really counts. She is just Bobbi on Christmas eve when Natasha leads her down streets strewn with little white lights to see the tree outside the Colosseum and she pulls her in for a kiss by her new scarf. Natasha rests her head on Bobbi’s shoulder when they eventually part. They stay there for a long time, just taking it all in until Natasha turns and murmurs “I love you,” against her neck.

Bobbi’s breath catches in her throat but she whispers back in kind. She presses their lips together again, still slow and chaste but there is an underlying desire for much more. They’re both smiling when they part and then without a word they begin to make their way back to the apartment they rented. It is a quicker journey than usual as they weave through the streets hand in hand and laughing, even with several stops to press each other into dark corners and kiss each other breathless.


End file.
